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Calendar No. 399. 

62d Congress, | SENATE. j Kkport 

'2d Session. \ \ No. 459. 



SALE AND DISPOSITION OF LANDS IN OMAHA INDIAN 
RESERVATION IN NEBRASKA. 



March. 8, 1912. — Ordered to be larinted. 



Mr. Brown, from the Committee on Indian Affairs, submitted the 

following 

REPORT. 

[To accompany S. 5060.] 

The Committee on Indian Affah's, to which was referred the bill 
(S. 5060) to provide for the disposal of the unallotted lands on the 
Omaha Indian Reservation in the State of Nebraska, having had the 
same under consideration, beg leave to report that the bill do pass 
with the following amendments: 

Page 2, line 15, strike out the word "seven" and insert in lieu 
thereof the word ''ten." 

Page 3, line 23, after the word "act" insert the following: 

And aftar reimbursing the general trust fund of the tribe for any assessment paid 
therefrom for protecting the unallotted tribal lauds from overflow. 

Page 4, line 3, strike out the word "one" and insert in lieu thereof 
the word "three." 

Page 4, line 6, after the word "be," strike out the remainder of said 
Ime and all of lines 7 to 15, inclusive, and insert in lieu thereof the 
f oUowing : 

Expended for the benefit of said Indians when and in such manner as in the opinion 
of the Secretary of the Interior shall be to their best interests, and pending such 
expenditure by the said Secretary the sums due the respective Indians shall be placed 
to the credit of the said Indians in the Treasury of the United States and shall bear 
interest at the rate of five per centum per annum; but in the event of the death of any 
such Indian while there remains in the Treasury to his credit any part of the sum so 
deposited the said sum shall be paid at once to his heirs, who shall be determined by 
the Secretary of the Interior, in accordance with the laws of descent in force in the 
State of Nebraska, and the action of the Secretary of the Interior in determining the 
legal heirs of any deceased Indian, as provided herein, shall in all respects be con- 
clusive and final. 

Your committee submits and makes a part of tliis report two letters 
from the Department of the Interior on the subject of the proposed 
legislation. 



2 DISPOSITIOX OF LANDS IN OMAHA INDIAN EESERVATION. 

Department of the Interior, 

Washington, February 14, 1912. 
Hon. Robert J. Gamble, 

Chairman Committee on Indian Affairs, United States Senate. 

Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt, by your reference of Februray 
a, 1912, for consideration and report, of a copy of Senate bill 5060, Sixty-second 
Congress, second session, providing for the sale of the tribal lands of the Omaha Indian 
Reservation in Nebraska. 

This department on January 28, 1910, submitted to the Congress drafts of a bill 
authorizing the sale of the Omaha tribal lands, and in its letters accompanying said 
drafts set forth fully the facts relating thereto. See House Document No. 630, Sixty- 
first Congress, second session. 

The Indians have expressed a desire to have 10 acres set aside for a tribal cemetery. 
It is respectfullv recommended, therefore, that the word "seven" in section 2, line 
15, page 2, be stVicken out and the word "ten" be inserted in lieu thereof. 

The word "one" in section 4, line 3, page 4, should be stricken out and the word 
"three" inserted in lieu thereof. 

The act of February IS, 1909 (35 Stat. L., 628), authorized the payment of any 
assessments which may be made by any drainage district in the State of Nebraska 
on the tribal lands of the Omaha and Winnebago Indians, to protect such lands from 
overflow, from the tribal funds remaining to the credit of these Indians. 

The estimated cost of drainage to protect the tribal lands of the Omaha Tribe is 
approximately §600. The lands subject to overflow will be greatly enhanced in value 
by the drainage provided for in the act of February 18, 1909, supra, and it is but just 
that the cost of draining these tribal lauds should be paid from the proceeds derived 
from their sale. It is believed that provision should be made in the bill for reim- 
bursing the tribal funds for the cost of draining the lands to be sold from the proceeds 
of the sale. This can be done by inserting after the word "act" in section 4, line 23, 
page 3, the following: 

"And after reimbursing the general trust fund of the tribe for any assessment paid 
therefrom for protecting the unallotted tribal lands from overflow." 

Section 4 of the bill provides that the proceeds derived from the sale of the tribal 
land[s shall be deposited in the Treasury of the United States to the individual credit 
of the unallotted children living at the date of the passage of the act, to draw interest 
-at the rate of 5 per cent per annum, each Indian to be paid his share with accrued 
interest when he reaches the age of 25 years. 

The department is of the opinion that authority should be given the Secretary of 
the Interior'to expend the share of individual Indians prior to the time they reach 
the age of 25 years, when, in his opinion, it will be to their advantage. It is not 
deemed advisable to have money deposited in the Treasury to the credit of these 
individual Indians which can not be used to provide for their education or to relieve 
sickness and distress. 

It is respectfully recommended, therefore, that section 4 be further amended by 
striking out all that part thereof after the word "be" in iine 6, page 4, and inserting 
in lieu thereof the following: 

' ' Expended for the benefit of said Indians when and in such manner as in the opinion 
of the Secretary of the Interior shall be to their best interests, and pending such expen- 
diture by the said Secretary the sums due the respective Indians shall be placed to the 
credit of said Indians in the Treasury of the United States, and shall bear interest 
at the rate of five per centum per annum, but in the event of the death of any such 
Indian w^hile there remains in the Treasury to his credit any part of the sum so depos- 
ited the said sum shall be paid at once to his heirs, who shall be determined by the Sec- 
retary of the Interior, in accordance with the laws of descent in force in the State of 
Nebraska, and the action of the Secretary of the Interior in determining the legal 
heirs of any deceased Indian, as provided herein, shall in all respects be conclusive 
and final." 

If amended as suggested herein, this department will be glad to see the enactment 
of Senate bill 5060, Sixty-second Congress, second session. 

Respectfully, Samuel Adams, 

Acting Secretary. 

^ Department op the Interior, 

Washington, February 8, 1909. 
Sir: By direction of the President, I inclose a draft of a bill, the enactment of 
which into law at this session of Congress I consider extremely urgent, for reasons 
which I shall set out. The proposed measure provides for the disposal of all the 
unallotted land on the Omaha Indian Reservation in the State of Nebraska. 



DISPOSITION OF LANDS IN OMAHA INDIAN RESERVATION, 6 

Allotments on the Omaha Indian Reservation were originally made in accordance 
with the provisions of the act of August 7, 1882 (22 Stat. L., 341). Allotments under 
this act to 954 members of the trib^were approved by the department on July 11, 
1884, and the trust period for such allotments will expire on July 10, 1909. 

Section 8 of the same act provided that the residue of lands, after all allotments 
had been made "* * * shall be patented to the said Omaha Tribe of Indians, 
which patent shall be of the legal effect and declare that the United States does and 
will hold the land thus patented for the period of twenty-five years in trust for the 
sole use and benefit of the said Omaha Tribe of Indians, and that at the expiration 
of said period the United States will convey the same by patent to said Omaha Tribe 
of Indians in fee discharged of said trust and free of all charge or encumbrance what- 
soever." 

For reasons which the present administration of the department and of the Indian 
Office is unable to supply, no patent to the tribal lands was issued in accordance with 
the direction of the section quoted. It is easy to conceive, however, that a court of 
law might hold that the act was mandatory, and required the issuance of a trust patent 
for the tribal lands, and that, since this ought to have been done, a constructive trust 
period went into effect with regard to the tribal lands from the date of the completion 
of allotments in severalty on July 11, 1884, and would therefore expire on July 10, 
1909. 

In view of this possible and very probable interpretation of the act of August 7. 1882, 
that a constructive trust period is now in effect, which will expire on July 10, 1909, it 
is manifest: 

1. That if no provision be made to meet the condition it needs only conflicting 
interests in the disposition of the unallotted lands to bring about much expensive and 
vexatious litigation and serious embarrassment to the administration of the affairs of 
these Indians. 

2. That any legislation designed to meet the emergency, if such exists, must be 
passed at this session of Congress in order to be of any avail. 

There are conflicting interests in the disposition of this unallotted land, which arose 
from the following conditions; 

Section 8 of the act of August 7, 1882, supra, provided that, from the residue of lands 
to be patented to the tribe in common, allotments should be made and patented to 
each Omaha child born prior to the expiration of the time during which is was i^ro- 
vided that the tribal lands should be held in trust (i. e., prior to July 10, 1909, on the 
constructive hypothesis herein outlined), the individual patents to override the 
patent to the tribe in common, and the lands so patented to the children to be segre- 
gated from the tribal lands. It is worthy of note also that the trust period on the pro- 
posed allotments to children was to expire, under the terms of this section, simul- 
taneously with the expiration of the trust period on the tribal lands. 

No allotments to children have been made under this section. The only allot- 
ments made from the residue of lands after the allotments of 1884 were made under 
the terms of the act of March 3, 1893, (27 Stat. L., 612, 630) which was amendatory in 
that it gave larger areas to children allotted under the former act, and provided for 
allotments to all women and children in being on March 3, 1893. The later act, how- 
ever, did not repeal the former, so that there can be no doubt but that the children 
born since IMarch 3, 1893, have been born into a right to an allotment of 40 acres each 
under the provision of the act of August 7, 1882, supra, so long as any is left of the 
tribal land. 

The difliculty in carrying out the intent of this act at this time arises from the fact 
that there are now living 520 children of the tribe who, having been born since March 
3, 1983, have received no allotments, and there is only about 4,500 acres of unallotted 
land, so that only 112 allotments of 40 acres each could be made to the 112 eldest un- 
allotted children, leaving 408 children for whom no provision would be made. The 
prospect of such a disposition has aroused intense opposition among the parents of the 
408 children who would thus receive nothing. Moreover, the unallotted land varies 
greatly in character and value, so that it was impossible equitably to divide it. 

To pass a measure providing for the equal distribution of the tribal lands among all 
the living children would be open to serious objection, because this would give each 
child only about 8.6 acres, of unequal value — a quantity too small to be either culti- 
vated or leased to advantage. 

It would seem wiser to provide legislation designed to carry out the sphit of the act 
of August 7, 1882, the neglect to comply with the letter of it being a matter not sus- 
ceptible of explanation at this time. "The value in the open market of the tribal 
lands is variously estimated at §100,000 to .$200,000. At the lower figure the sale of 
the lands and an equal distribution of the funds so arising among all the children 
would give each child about $190. The oldest child who could become a beneficiary 
under such a plan would be about 15 years of age when title passed to him for his share 



4 DISPOSITION OF LANDS IN OMAHA INDIAN EESERVATION. 

of $190. If this sum were placed to his credit in the Treasmy at 5 per cent interest 
per annum until he was 25 years of age, the amount then due him would be $285. The 
younger the child at the date of the passage and approval of such act the greater the 
sum which would be his on reaching the age of 25 years. 

Such is the purport of the accompanying bill, which is believed not only to furnish 
the best solution of the problem, but to meet the wishes of the majority of the tribe 
as expressed in open council, and in communications to the Indian Office. The bill 
contains certain reservations essential to the welfare of the tribe; provides for an Indian 
town neai- the present agency, which is a cherished dream of the Omahas; and gives 
the Nebraska Historical Society the old Presbyterian mission, which it is their desire 
to preserve as a landmark; and I strongly lu-ge its enactment into law, and again call 
your attention to the fact that it is necessary that such an enactment be had at this 
session if at all. 

"\'^ery respectfully, James Rudolph Garfield, 

Secretary. 

The Speaker of the House of Representatives. 



AN ACT To provide for the disposal of the unallotted land on the Omaha Indian Reservation in the State 

of Nebraska. 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Rejjresentatives of the United States of America 
in Congress assembled, That the Secretary of the Interior be, and he hereby is, author- 
ized to cause to be surveyed, if necessary, and appraised, in manner hereinafter set 
forth, in tracts of forty acres each; and, after such survey and appraisement, to sell and 
convey, in quantities not to exceed one hundred and sixty acres to any one purchaser, 
all the unallotted lands on the Omaha Indian Reservation in the State of Nebraska, 
except such tracts as are hereinafter specifically reserved: Provided, That the said land 
shall be sold to the highest bidder under such regulations as the Secretary of the Interior 
may prescribe, but no part of said land shall be sold at less than the appraised value 
thereof: And provided further , That prior to such appraisement and sale, any member 
of the Omaha Tribe whose allotment is subject to erosion by the Missouri River shall be 
permitted to relinquish such allotment and select lieu lands of equal area from the 
unallotted lands, the lands so relinquished to become a part of the unallotted tribal 
lands and subject to appraisement and sale under the terms of this act. 

Sec. 2. That the Secretary of the Interior is hereby directed to reserve from sale 
under the terms of this act the following tracts of land, for the purposes designated: 
Forty-nine acres of the land now used for agency purposes, to be reserved for agency 
and school purposes for so long as the need therefor exists; seven acres, to be selected 
by the tribe, for use as a tribal cemetery; ten acres of the land now reserved for the use 
of the Presbyterian Church, to be selected by the officials of said church, for the use of 
the church so long as needed for religious or educational pm-poses; two acres of the land 
on which is standing what is known as the old Presbyterian mission building, and 
the Secretary of the Interior is hereby authorized to cause a patent in fee simple to 
issue therefor in the name of the State Historical Society of Nebraska: Provided, 
That, of the land now reserved for agency purposes, the Secretary of the Interior is 
directed to reserve and set aside for town-site piu-poses one hundred and sixty-four 
acres, other than the forty-nine acres hereinbefore reserved, and shall cause the same 
to be surveyed and platted into town lots, streets, alleys, and parks, the lots to be 
appraised and sold under the terms of this act, but no bid shall be received therefor 
except from members of the tribe, and the streets, alleys, and parks are hereby dedi- 
cated to the public use. 

^ Sec. 3. Thattheappraisement directed by thisactshallbemade by three competent 
commissioners to be appointed by the Secretary of the Interior, after the completion 
of the surveys herein directed and authorized, one of whom shall be a resident citizen 
of the State of Nebraska, one an employee of the Indian Bureau, and one holding 
tribal relations with the Omaha Indians, said commission to be paid a salary of not to 
exceed five dollars ])er day each while actually employed in the inspection and 
appraisal of said land, such appraisement to be completed within such a period after 
the date of the organization of said commission as the Secretary of the Interior shall 
designate. 

Sec. 4. That the proceeds of such sale, after paying all the expenses incident to 
and necessary for carrying out the provisions of this act, shall be divided pro rata 
among the children of the Omaha Tribe living on the date of the passage and approval 
of this act who have not received allotments of land under the acts of August seventh, 
eighteen hundred and eightv-two (Twenty-second United States Statutes at Large, 



D 14 BA^ 



DISPOSITION OF LANDS IN OMAHA INDIAN EESEEVATION. 5 _ 

page one hundred and forty-one), and March thii-d, eighteen hundred and uinety-thi-ee 
(Twenty-thu-d United States Statutes at Large, page six hundred and thirty), and 
shall be placed to the credit of said Indians in the Treasury of the United States, and 
shall bear interest at the rate of five per cent per annum, until such time as the individ- 
ual Indians shall have reached the age of twenty-five years, when the share to the 
credit of each Indian, with accrued interest, shall be paid to him upon application 
therefor through the Secretary of the Interior; but in the event of the death of such 
Indian prior to reaching the age of twenty-five years, his share shall be paid at once 
to his heirs under the laws of descent in force in the State of Nebraska. 

Sec. 5. That for the pm-pose of carrying out the provisions of this act there is 
hereby appropriated, out of any money in the Treasm-y not otherwise appropriated, 
the sum of three thousand dollars, or so much thereof as may be necessary, to be 
reimbursable out of the funds arising from the sale of said lands. 

Sec. 6. All acts and parts of acts not consistent with the provisions of this act are 
hereby repealed. 

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